Mixing ball



May 11, 1954 v. LA J. BEAR MIXING BALL Filed Oct. 28, 1952 I lkzfenia M fi Patented May 11, 1954 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE MIXING BALL Vera La J unc Bear, Tulsa, Okla. Application October 28, 1952, Serial No. 317,339 (01. 259-144) 3 Claims.

The present invention relates to the art of mixing together, in small quantities for home use, the ingredients required to make gravies, salads, dressings, drinks or for mixing any liquids or solids which can be mixed together, and to the art of whipping materials as, for example, cream.

The conventional mixing and Whipping practice is to use hand operated or power operated stirrers or beaters. Mere stirring is almost a useless task in mixing some ingredients. An example il1ustrative of the ineifectiveness or" conventional stirring and beating is presented in the mixing of flour and water, something that is done every day in the kitchen. Even though stirring or beating is continued for many minutes, the mixture remains lumpy; a smooth mixture being achieved only by squeezing it through a cloth.

Under conventional mixing practice the solids tend to settle to the bottom of the receptacle in which the operation is being carried out. Therefore, unless the implement bein used to agitate the mixture rests on the bottom of the receptacle and either is coextensive with such bottom, or can be shifted, while in contact with the bottom, into every corner, the solids must somehow be lifted to bring them within the field of action of such implement.

The object of the present invention is to produce a novel, simple, rugged and inexpensive device whereby the aforesaid kinds of mixing may be done easily, very rapidly and very effectively.

The various features of novelty whereby the present invention is characterized will hereinafter he pointed out with particularity in the claims, but, for a full understanding of the invention and of its objects and advantages, reference may be had to the following detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying drawing, wherein:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a preferred embodiment of my invention.

Fig. 2 is a top plan view of said embodiment.

Fig. 3 is a face view of one or the two discs constituting said embodiment.

Fig. 4 is an edge view of the disc appearing in Fig. 3.

Referring to the drawing, A and B are two round plates, or discs. Each disc contains a slot I extending from the center through the periphery; each slot having a width equal to the thickness of the discs. The two discs are assembled by pressing them together, while standing at right angles to each other, so that the slot in each disc grips the unmutilated part of the other disc aligned with the slot in such other disc.

The discs should be fairly thick in order to give mass to the device. When made of metal, the discs may be thinner than when made of plastic material, for example. In the case of a metal device, the discs may be spot welded to each other at the ends of their meeting diameters. If thermoplastic material is used in the discs, the discs need only be heated at the ends of their meeting diameters to fuse them together.

The discs may, of course, be of any desired diameter. For a device adapted to be used in any small jar, as well as larger jars, the discs are preferably about one and five-eighths inches in diameter. Discs of this size should be about one eighth inch thick when made of plastic and about one sixteenth inch thick when made of soft aluminum.

The two wings or ears, 2 and 3 on each disc, separated from each other by the slot in the latter, are bent in opposite directions from the plane of the disc. This serves two purposes: that of bracing the discs to keep them at right angles to each other, and that of providin irregular surfaces across which the materials, that are being mixed, flow. By having these curved surfaces,

the four vanes into which the discs are divided do not simply slash through the mixture but also exert cross thrusts that cause surging of the materials as the mixing device drives through the mixture.

The discs contain many closely spaced, fairly large holes 4. The holes, in the example given, are preferably about a quarter inch in diameter. These holes permit the mixture to rush through when the mixing device and the mixture drive against each other.

In the periphery of the discs are many wide, deep notches 5, preferably V-shaped. These notches provide numerous short cutting edges to break up lumps too large to pass through holes 4. The holes and the notches, together, occupy about one third of the area of each disc.

It will be seen that the device which has been described is a spherical ball having the same diameter as the discs, for the edges of the round plates or discs lie wholly in a spherical surface.

To use the device, it need only be dropped into a small jar or other receptacle, along with the ingredients for the mixture to be created. After applying a lid or cover to the receptacle, the lat ter is simply shaken vigorously for a surprisingly short time. In the case of mixing flour and water, for example, in such amounts as are usually needed in the average kitchen, a smooth mixture is created within three seconds. Following conventional stirring and beating practices, the making of this same mixture requires at least ten minutes and, even then, straining usually is needed to eliminate lumps.

While the receptacle is being shaken, the solids are not permitted to settle on the bottom, but are kept in suspension. In short, there is nothing static with respect to either the ingredients or the mixing ball, both being shaken and thrown about and flying at each other from all directions. The entire mass surges violently, the ingredients being driven back and forth through the holes in the ball, over the deflecting surfaces, through the notches, and past the peripheral edges of the discs. The mass of the ball issuificient to cause it to be dominant and force its way through the ingredients, backfland forth across every dimension of the space within the receptacle, so long as the shaking of thel'atter continues. I

Because of the shape of the-device there: is no danger of breaking aglass receptacle as the device strikes against its walls, even though'the device be fairly massive.

The performance of the device is the same for mere whipping-cream or eggs, for example-es for mixing a plurality of ingredients; highly satisfactory results being achieved in less time than is required under conventional practices.

It is obvious that the device can easilybe cleaned after using'it, little time being needed for this operation.

or considerable importance is the fact that the device may be used in receptacles of various sizes and shapes, no special receptacle or alteration in the lid of a receptacle being required to meet the demands of the device.

In the particular embodiment of the invention illustrated the two discs are alike. Therefore the surfaces of the disc halves or vanes which form the sides of the four troughs partially. close'the ends of two of the. troughs while the endsof'the other two are fully open. In the case of the trough facing the observer in Fig. 1, the. wings 2, Z extend outwardly and create flaring mouths at the ends of the trough. Wings 2. and 3 at the ends of the trough inthe upper half of Fig. 2, facing'the observer, on. the other hand then a left hand disc will differ therefrom only in that wing 2 shall be bent toward the observer while wing 3 is bent away from the observer. A ball composed of these two discs contains troughs'all of which have flaring ends, as in the case' of the complete trough visible in Fig. 1.

I claim:

'1. A mixing device consisting of two foraminated discs each containing a slot as wide as the thickness of the discs and extending from the periphery to the center, the discs being inter'- locked at their slots to form a spherical ball, the

, portions of each disc beside the slot being bent in opposite directions from. the plane of that disc to brace the structure andcreate deflecting sur faces. 7

2. A mixing device as set forth in claim 1 wherein the two discs are duplicates of each other.

3. A mixing device consisting of two foraminated discs each slottedfrom the periphery to the center and interlocked at their slots to form a. spherical ball, the portions on opposite sides of. each slot being curved gradually away from their original plane.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date D. 161,576 Ernst Jan.,9, 1951i 632,044 Chapman Aug. 29, 1899 2,323,795 Clarin July 6, I943 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country 7 Date 164,086 Austria Sept. .26, 1-949- 

